Precast panels with corner-divider projections

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a system of joining precast panels having an increased-thickness portion at one end of each panel, bordered by a slot for receiving caulking or the like to replicate the actual caulked joint deposed at the opposite border of the increased thickness portion of each panel. The system preferably provides smooth, unbroken interior walls, even at corners, and may be used to panel lengths up to forty feet or more. The disclosure also discloses means for making the panels, including apparatus for making differently-colored corner-dividers.

I 1 PRECAST PANELS WITH CORNER-DIVIDER PROJECTIONS Paul S. Kelsey. PO. Box I03, Forestdale, Mass 02644 Filed: July I6, 1973 Appl. No; 379,313

[76! Inventor:

[ June 24, 1975 Primary E.ran1'inerRoy Lake Assistant E.wn1iner-Craig R. Feinberg Attorney, Agmi. ur Firm-Cushman, Darby & Cushman [57] ABSTRACT There is disclosed a system of joining precast panels [52] U.S. Cl. 249/91; 52/259; 52/315; having an increased-thickness portion at one end of 52/323; 52/602; 425/123 each panel, bordered by a slot for receiving caulking 151] Int. Cl B32b 3/08 or the like to replicate the actual caulked joint de- 158] Field of Search 425/117, I23; 249/91; posed at the opposite border of the increased thick- 264/261; 52/314, 3 I5, 316, 602, 259, 323 ness portion of each panel. The system preferably provides smooth, unbroken interior walls, even at corl56] References Cited ners, and may be used to panel lengths up to forty feet n- STATES PATENTS or more. The disclosure also discloses means for mak- 049702 mm} Grady H 52,602 X ing the panels, including apparatus for making differ- 3,3s5.u12 5/1968 Lovcgrccn 1 .1 52/100 x em'y'colored 1605,35 9/l97l Marcott 52/274 X 3.694.533 9/1972 Kclscy 425/123 x 3 7 Drawmg F'gures 7 44 gm- I-%// IY I.---. 4 J4 y 3 I V 1 .1 r; L

g 74 7f. 74 p 5% 27 74 7 f2 PATENTED JUN 2 4 ms SHEET I III IN a a w PATENTED JUN 24 ms SHEET NKQ 1 PRECAST PANELS WITH CORNER-DIVIDER PROJECTIONS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Equal short armed corner panels can be made with greater case. but the vertical jointing lines that are created when adjacent panels are put in place can and are most often objectionable.

Since most states in the United States limit semitrailer lengths to 40 feet. that 40 feet has become the general maximum dimension of precast panels that are offered by the precast panel manufacturers here. Buildings having a greater than 40 foot frontages or heights. therefore. have to use more than one panel and the ensuing joints between panels can become a real appearance problem. a problem that simply does not exist Patent Number Issue Date 'Iitle 3.694.533 Sept. 26. 1972 Slab-Faced and Headed Panels including ('orncrs or Returns Application No. Filing Date Title Disposition 49.14) June 23. W70 Bottom-Poured Slab-Faced Panel Casting System now abandoned 49. l 52 June 23. l'47ll Method and Apparatus for Casting Slab-Faced Pa -l allowed August 5. I974 ZSLXRS Ma It). 1972 Method for Making Faced Patent No. 3.773.880. issued Brick Slabs November It). 1973 254.43) May lit. W72 Method and Apparatus for Pm m N 1751.201. i d

(asting Slab-Faced Panels Au st 7, I973 324.302 January l7. W73 Full Cavity (ast Panel now abandoned During a search which preceded the preparation of this document. the applicant became knowledgeable of the following prior art:

)StL-tttl Pcckham Feb. 22. lQlt) Z.l()2.443 Thorn Dec. I4. 1937 3.594.928 Horowitz Apr. 2). i952 2.27m. Hines Jan. 27. W42 .3.352.ll7. Hipplc Nov. I4. 1967 3.605.353 Marcotl Sept. 20. I971 Load bearing and non load bearing precast concrete panels have for the last twenty-five years been capturing an ever increasing share of exterior and interior walls of buildings the world overdisplacing hand laid bricks. tile. concrete blocks and/or on site formed and poured concrete walls. As could only be expected. numerous systems have been devised to decorate the exposed faces of said pre-cast panels with a wide variety of pleasing to the eye and weather proof materials such as full width brick. thin slab brick. glazed tile. both bathroom and structural. quarry tile. slate. and the like. One of the major reasons why none of the precast panel facing systems in use to date. has taken hold and become popular. is that none have provided a practical attractive corner unit. equivalent for instance to hand laid bricks. where alternate header and stretcher faces are exposed on either side of the corner line or a simple and foolproof way to attractively joint adjacent faced panels to each other a problem. of course. that does not exist with hand laid bricks. tile and the like.

As disclosed in the present inventors U.S. Pat. application Scr. No. 49.148. filed June 23. 1970. now U.S. Pat. No. 3.694.533. he has discovered how to face precast corner panels and duplicate any facing pattern that can be executed by hand. Single or double face corners can be economically provided with case. but unless one extension of the corner unit is less than 8. It) or 12 feet long. depending on local maximum truck trailer load width restrictions. it cannot be delivered to the job site.

when brick. tile and the like are hand laid and can be laid without interruption from corner to corner or bottom to top of any wall exposure regardless of its dimensions and in any pattern.

While most of the precast concrete panels made to date. in this country. have been non-load-bearing and have actually been bolted on to steel structures as exterior facings. mostly limited to duplicate units containing one or more window openings. there is every reason to believe that in the future most precast panels will be load hearing as they generally are today in the Russian Soviet Socialist Republic. in Eastern Europe and in a high percentage of Western Europe. Also. there is every reason to believe that a sizable percentage of individual residential structures of the future will have their exterior walls made of maintenance-free loadbearing. decorated. precast panels.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION There is disclosed a system of joining precast panels having an increased-thickness portion at one end of each panel. bordered by a slot for receiving caulking or the like to replicate the actual caulked joint is at the opposite border of the increased thickness portion of each panel. The system preferably provides a smooth. unbroken interior wall. even at corners. and may be used to panel lengths up to forty feet or more. The disclosure also discloses means for making the panels. including apparatus for making differently colored cornerdividers.

To meet the present and future need of a simple and economical system to provide attractive corners and junctions for precast panels in general. and especially for such panels when they are faced on one or both sides with decorative materials. the present invention provides a universal projecting corner-divider panel extension. This universal integral extension automatically makes one end or side of every panel that incorporates it. when used with like panels. an individual decorative unit. and one which has one end that serves as either a projecting full-warp-around corner or a full project ing spacer between adjacent precast panels. makes Special corner units" which are more difficult to man ufacture. transport and install. unneeded anymore. The problems of mating adjacent decorated panels just dont exist: each panel is a complete unit. having its decorated face framed between eye appealing. project ing plain or decorated dividers.

The principles of the invention will be further hereinafter discussed with reference to the drawings wherein preferred embodiments are shown. The specifics illustrated in the drawings are intended to exemplify. rather than limit. aspects of the invention as defined in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIGS. Iulc are successive fragmentary a transverse. horizontal sectional views through respective variations of a panel produced in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a traverse horizontal sectional view. on a rc' duced scale ofa building wall constructed using panels produced in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal. vertical sectional view of a horizontal casting box for producing one-side-faccd panels. as an illustration of the fabrication of types of panels produceable in accordance with the present invention.

Unless otherwise indicated. the dimensions given herein are of the preferred embodiments as a means for more rapidly conveying the concepts under consideration. The number of bricks shown in a course exemplifies larger numbers also.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE MOST PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1a shows an unfaced precast concrete panel II) with a I inch projecting universal corner or divider ll incorporated on one end I4. The inch X M. inch deep slot 16 next to the projection 12 is to provide a cavity for a duplicate fill I8 (FIG 2). to exactly match the color and texture of the actual elastic joint filling 20 (FIG. 2) that will be used to seal the actual joint on the other side 24 ofthe projection [2. whether it be a corner (legend. FIG. 2) or "divider" (legend. FIG. 2) installation. Field and factory joints are rarely matchable in color even when the same formula is used; age makes the difference. like trying to match touch-up paint on a used car. When the materials are radically different. plastic vs. a mortar. there is no hope of attaining a completely unobjectionablc match.

The relative dimensions of the projection l2. shown in FIG. la. is not invariable. but is believed by the inventor to offer an eye-pleasing wall and it can be made with the present Inventor's Vacuum Holding And Seal ing System. Patent Application. Ser. No. 49.l52. filed June 23. 1970. when the panel is to be faced. about which more is written below.

The 7 inch projecting front 26 and end 28 width is the thickness ofthe panel (at 30). 6 inches in this case. plus the l inch projection 12. This relationship for case in manufacturing is generally fixed thickness of the panel plus the projection or projections.

In FIG. la. the panel II) is shown as being solid. c.g.. concrete as at 32. in FIG. Iv cored (hollow) as at 34. FIG. I( faced on one side as at 36 or in FIG. Id on both sides as at 38. or including a core ofinsulating material 40. as it normally would. alternatives that would not at feet the simplicity of design of the universal projecting corner-divider 10.

One of the possible variations in this application is that when the projection 12 to be used as a divider." (see legend. FIG. 2). it is a very easy matter to have the projection 12 poured with a different colored concrete than is the basic panel. i.e.. the remainder. The narrow strip 42 (FIG. 3) that forms the cavity 16 for the matching simulated joint I8 acts as a separator for the two different colors in this situation. When the projection I2 is to be used as a corner (legend. FIG. 2) the color can still be changed by installing a temporary extension 44 (FIG. 3) of the cavity' strip 42 on the casting box 46 as shown in FIG. 3 to separate the different color pour just long enough to accomplish the desired ends.

These options can produce very pleasing and striking effects that are built-in and permanent. not requiring initial decorating or redecorating at rather frequent future intervals.

The panels l0 different configurations are easy to produce with slightly modified versions of the horizontal vacuum sealing and holding system disclosed in my aforementioned application. FIG. 3 shows a preferred panel mold box 46. set up to make faced or unfaced solid panels or those with a core of insulating material.

There are buildings. warehouses. garages. factories. and the like. where unfaced precast panels would give a more pleasing exterior and interiors if like or similar projections 12 extended from both sides at the same one end of the panel. Such panels faced on one or both sides can also be made using the teachings above. Such panels could easily be made in a comparably modified book'- casting box such as based on the one shown in FIG. 8 of my earlier application Ser. No. 49.152. These panels can in the same way as the one of FIG. Id incorporate an insulating core. The dual projections l2 on these panels could be cast of a different colored concrete than the main surfaces just as described in relation to the panels of FIG. I.

While panels are shown in FIGS. 10-3 to have their maximum dimension horizontally. many installations will have the maximum trucltable dimension vertically extending. Warehouse walls. for instance. are rarely less than l8 feet high and are often quite higher. Apartment houses. office buildings. schools. etc. are today being faced with multi-story high vertical precast panels. The universal corner-dividers 10 are believed to have equal utility in uses where their vertical dimension is greater than their length from end-to-cnd.

The universal corner-dividers Ill offer an especially attractive and most flexible tool to adapt precast concrete panels to home construction. Architects can crenellate house walls to their hearts content and not have to give greatly in price for *extras" to do it. nor have the horrible. clumsy. unfinished butt corners" now being offered by a minority of pre-casters of full brick panels.

Probably the main reason that factory made precast panels. faced or unfaced. have not even been much more widely used. in this as well as other countries. is that to date. practically every job has been an individual custom creation. Architects have racked their brains to design monuments to themselves. The precasters have not only been faced with increasingly difficult castings to successfully cast. but they have had to start practically from scratch on every job with whole new outlays for very. very. expensive casting boxes. production equipment that is discarded as soon as each building is completed. Not one precaster in our country. to the inventors knowledge. even offers a simple panel system much less makes regular production runs of same or inventories a reasonable stock. lf builders had to wait for an architect to design special brick sizes and shapes for every job or special concrete block sizes and shapes for every job. the cost of both items would become prohibitively expensive. and slow to get delivcry on.

The system described herein offers the precasters the first real breakthrough in design that will permit them to most economically produce and inventory for immediate shipment. standardized panels that every architect and builder can utilize. panels that offer low. low installed costs. unlimited life and pleasing to the eye simple elegance. Panels that can be customized' through the facing materials used and different colored concrete facings. customizing' that means slight delivery delays but adds very little to the precasters costs can be more widely offered. However. tongues and grooves could be provided on opposite ends of the panels. on the projection fronts 26. and/or on the top and bottom edges of the panels. were one to wish to. with the teachings provided and referred to herein. without departing at all from the present invention.

The casting box 46 is shown having a flat floor 50 which peripherally mounts sidewalls 52. upstanding from thereupon and arranged with respect to one another to enclose a rectangular space 54. A divider strip 42 extends up part way through the space 54. extending between the two (unshown ones) of the sidewalls 52 that form what will be the upper and lower edges of the panels. 'lhe strip 42 is closer to one end wall 52 of the casting box than to the other. corresponding to the relative horizontal size of the projected and remaining parts of the face of the panels.

A body (broadly indicated by the numeral 56) fills the lower portion of the space 54 on the side of the strip 42 where the non-projected. remaining portion of the panel I0 is to be made. In the instance depicted. where the panel to be made is to be faced on one side. the body 56 is shown being constituted by a vacuum plate insert 58. as described in the inventors earlier applications and patents listed above. and by the brick slabs 60 shown sealed and seated thereon in a coursing array.

(The vacuum plate insert 58 comprises a lower layer of resilient material 62 such as closed cell sponge rubber. provided with a system of interconnected passageways 64 extending therethrough. and which communicate with an opening 66 through the floor 50 of the casting box 46. a middle layer of stiffer material like plywood 67. provided with a set of through passages 68 which communicate with the passageway system 64. and an upper layer of resilient material 70 such as sponge rubber made as a multi-ported mask with openings 72 therethrough each corresponding to where a brick slab 60 is to be centered and seated thereagainst. The sandwich 62. 67. 70 (i.e.. the insert 58) may be secured together. e.g.. by adhesive or mechanical means.) The insert 58 is preferably removable so it may be replaced with a smooth block or other decoratively configured mold insert of similar over-all dimensions may be used instead when the panel being made is not to be a slab-faced one. A grid with a rectangular array ofindividual cells for receipt of brick slabs may be temporarily installed on top of the insert 58 as described in my aforementioned application. Ser. No. 49.152. filed June 23. I970. After the slabs are emplaced. they may be sealed by pushing down on the upwardly facing backsides 74 of the slabs 60. preferably on all slabs at once using a downward force applying seater mechanism and simultaneously beginning then continuing to draw a vacuum through the system of interconnected passageways 66. 64. 68, 72. Then the grid may be removed. while vacuum continues to be drawn to seal the front faces 76 that will be exposed once the panel is completed and installed. so that the hardenable panel backing composition 78. e.g.. concrete. that will be filled into the box to complete the panel does not run onto and harden in necessarily slightly uneven areas of the front faces 76. Pulling the vacuum also serves to bulge the resilient upper layer up somewhat into the open network ofjointwork area among and around the perimeter of the brick slabs 60 so that the material 78 filled into the casting box to complete the panel will have a correspondingly concavely recessed. pleasing exterior surface.

During the casting of the backing material 78. various inclusions. permanent and/or temporary. can be installed in and on the casting box. as described in my own aforementioned prior art. e.g.. to provide reinforcing 80. open spaces. an insulating core 82. and the like.

Note now that because the vacuum plate insert 58 fits right along side the divider strip 42 and the nearest edges 84 of the adjacent brick slabs do also. and thus. the composite height of the vacuum plate insert and slabs. i.e.. of the body 56. is greater than the height of the strip 42 above the floor 50. when the vacuum is cut off and the panel 10 is removed from the casting box after the material 78 has sufficiently hardened. the conjunction of the structural relationships just highlighted forms the groove. slot or cavity 16.

It should now be apparent that the precast panels with corner-divider projections as described hereinabove posses each of the attributes set forth in the specification under the heading Summary of the lnvention hercinbefore. Because the precast panels with corner-divider projections of the invention can be modified to some extent without departing from the principles of the invention as they have been outlined and explained in this specification. the present invention should be understood as encompassing all such modifications as are within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. in combination:

a. a casting box including:

i. a floor and a plurality of upstanding sidewalls arranged about the outer periphery of the floor to define a closed space among them. bottomed by said floor:

ii. a space-dividing wall upstanding from said floor within said space to provide a separator having its farthest extent from the floor closer to the floor than the farthest extent of the upstanding sidewalls is from the floor. the separator extending between two spaced points on said upstanding sidewalls to divide the part of said space nearest the floor into a larger portion on one side of the separator and a smaller portion on the other side of the separator: b. a removable block means substantially filling the floor area of said larger portion ol said space and up to less than the extent of said separator from said floor: whereby.

panel of facing material and hardenable panel backing composition may be cast in situ in the cast ing box to substantially fill the remainder of said space with said panel. with said panel ha ing edges being molded against said casting box upstanding sidewalls and one face with a first larger portion formed against said block means on said one side of the separator. a second. smaller portion formed against the casting box floor on the other side of said separator and a groove molded therein extending between edges thereof by the inclusion of the separator thereinto between said larger and smaller portions thereof.

2. The combination of claim 1. wherein the casting box upstanding sidewalls are constituted by form which describes a rectangular figure; wherein said separator extends between two opposed ones of said four upstanding sidewalls and substantially parallel to the two other ones of said four upstanding sidewalls. whereby said face of the panel is prmided \\ith an enlargedthickness piller-like element \isually set off from the remainder of that face by said groove.

3. The combination of claim I. wherein said casting boy includes means defining a \acuum port thereinto below the upper extent of the block from the floor; herein the removable block means is constituted by a vacuum plate insert comprising:

a first layer of resilient gasketing material having means defining a netyyork of passageways therethrough in communication with said vacuum port:

an intermediate layer of relatively stiff material ha\- ing a system of passagemways therethrough communicating with the network of passageways of said first layer.

a second layer of resilient gasketing material having an opening underlying each brick slab and passageway means communicating each opening with the system of passageways in said intermediate layer: and

means holding said first layer. intermediate layer and second layer together in a sandwiched condition. 

1. In combination: a. a casting box including: i. a floor and a plurality of upstanding sidewalls arranged about the outer periphery of the floor to define a closed space among them, bottomed by said floor; ii. a space-dividing wall upstanding from said floor within said space to provide a separator having its farthest extent from the floor closer to the floor than the farthest extent of the upstanding sidewalls is from the floor, the separator extending between two spaced points on said upstanding sidewalls to divide the part of said space nearest the floor into a larger portion on one side of the separator and a smaller portion on the other side of the separator; b. a removable block means substantially filling the floor area of said larger portion of said space and up to less than the extent of said separator from said floor; whereby, a panel of facing material and hardenable panel backing composition may be cast in situ in the casting box to substantially fill the remainder of said space with said panel, with said panel having edges being molded against said casting box upstanding sidewalls and one face with a first larger portion formed against said block means on said one side of the separator, a second, smaller portion formed against the casting box floor on the other side of said separator and a groove molded therein extending between edges thereof by the inclusion of the separator thereinto between said larger and smaller portions thereof.
 2. The combination of claim 1, wherein the casting box upstanding sidewalls are constituted by form which describes a rectangular figure; wherein said separator extends between two opposed ones of said four upstanding sidewalls and substantially parallel to the two other ones of said four upstanding sidewalls, whereby said face of the panel is provided with an enlarged-thickness piller-like element visually set-off from the remainder of that face by said groove.
 3. The combination of claim 1, wherein said casting box includes means defining a vacuum port thereinto below the upper extent of the block from the floor; wherein the removable block means is constituted by a vacuum plate insert comprising: a first layer of resilient gasketing material having means defining a network of passageways therethrough in communication with said vacuum port; an intermediate layer of relatively stiff material having a system of passagemways therethrough communicating with the network of passageways of said first layer; a second layer of resilient gasketing material having an opening underlying each brick slab and passageway means communicating each opening with the system of passageways in said intermediate layer; and means holding said first layer, intermediate layer and second layer together in a sandwiched condition. 